Numerous types of flat plate collector panel assemblies have been devised for solar installations and which can be constructed either as a part of a solar house or may comprise a part of a solar installation for an existing house. In the flat plate collectors, customarily an absorber plate is employed which is suitably comprised of steel, aluminum or copper plate coated with a matt black paint and characterized by its ability to absorb radiant energy and convert it to heat. The absorber plate is covered by glass in order to reduce the heat loss from the plate without a corresponding reduction in the heat input due to the selective transmittance of the sun's rays by the glass or glazing. Typically, either single or multiple layers of glass may be employed over the absorber plate. If thermal fluid, such as, air or water, is circulated as a conducting medium in thermal contact with the absorber plate, it will remove some of the heat absorbed by the plate and this is typically done through the utilization of spaced parallel tubes or pipes passing through undulations or grooves formed in the absorber plate. The fluid-circulating tubes are connected to a common supply header at one end of the plate and to a return header at the other end for transferring the thermal fluid from the tubing into a suitable heat storage area. An insulating layer is disposed beneath the absorber plate and additional insulating layers may be disposed in surrounding relation to the absorber plate as well as the glass covering and any intermediate air spaces between the glass and absorber plate. The entire collector described is assembled within a unitary frame or tray generally comprised of a flat bottom and outer side and end walls.
The foregoing is given more as a setting for the present invention in which it is proposed to provide for a novel and improved frame support consisting of a side and end wall connector assembly for each of a series of modular flat plate collector panels so as to facilitate interconnection of a series of panels in side-by-side unitary relation to one another. In this relation, modular collector panel assemblies have been proposed for use in the past. However, their use has required considerable amounts of on-site construction and assembly, have been limited in application and quite time-consuming to install.
It is therefore proposed to provide in a collector panel assembly for an improved frame which among other things serves as a means for supporting the various component parts of each panel section in place and facilitates interconnection between panel sections into a compact unitary structure in such a way as to minimize labor and time-consuming tasks at the installation site.